Guiding device for trolleys.



No. 678,6I7. Patented July I6, |90l.

A. J.'GRIFFIN. l GUIDING DEVICE FDH TBOLLEYS.

(Application filed Nov. 6, 1900.) (No Model.)

Witnesses.' {W12/671107:'

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lINTTnn STATES PnTnNT @Tricia ANTHONXT J. GRIFFIN, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

GUIDING DEVICE FOR TROLLIEYS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 678,617, dated. July 16, 1901i. Application led November 6, 1900l Serial No. 35,649. (No model.)

To @ZZ 'whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, ANTHONY J. GRIFFIN, a citizen of the United States, residing in the borough of Manhattan, in the city and county of New York, State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Guiding Devices for Trolleys, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to devices for guiding trolleys upon and for preventing their escape from the line or circuit-wire of the' system.

Primarily the object of my invention is the provision of guiding arms or levers having outwardly-daring ends, said levers being mounted for free and independent swinging movement upon the bolt or axle carried by the fork of the trolley-pole or other support and upon which the trolley or contact wheel is mounted for rotation.

A further object of the invention is the provision of guides consisting of arms or levers having flaring or outwardly-curved ends, said arms or levers being loosely journaled upon the axis of the trolley and having weighted ends, by which means they are always caused when not in contact with a switch or other obstruction to assume vertical positions with relation to the circuitwire.

A further object of the invention is the provision, in connection with a trolley-pole or other suitable carrier, of arms or levers independently journaled on the trolley-axle at each side thereof and each having an outwardly-cnrvedand tapered end for guiding the pole in such a manner that the trolley will always be caused to seek the wire and also having weighted lower ends by which, no matter what may be the position of the pole, the guiding attachments will be caused automatically to assume vertical positions.

A further object of the invention is the provision of guides of improved construction j ournaled upon the aXle on which the trolley is loosely mounted and provided with overhanging lips or guards curved to conform to the circumference of the trolley-wheeLthereby preventing the entrance of the circuitwire between said wheel and the sides of the guards.

A further object of the invention is the vers, taken on line 1 1, Fig. 1.

provision f guiding arms orlevers so formed that they will not interfere with the crossingplates or switches when the arms are passing under the same.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 represents a side elevation of my invention. Fig. 2 is a plan view thereof, showing the guiding attachment-s in their normal vertical positions. Fig. 3 is a plan view showing said attachments as swung or tilted to a horizontal position by contact with a switch, crossing, or other obstruction; and Fig. 4 is a sectional'view of one of the guiding arms or le- Similar characters designate like parts throughout the several views.

Referring to the drawings, the numeral designates a trolley-pole (or it may be any other suitable carrier) of common construction, having a bifurcated end 10', the usual cross bolt or bar 12, and a trolley or contact Wheel 13 loosely mounted between the arms of the fork upon said bolt l2. Looselyjournaled for free and independent swinging movement upon the bolt 12 and at each side of the bifurcated portion l() of the trolleypole are guiding arms or levers 14, each of which is provided with a hub 14', sleeved upon the bolt 12, with a guiding end 15, outwardly curved at 15', on its inner side, said end terminating in a point 152 and with a weighted extremity 16, which is curved at its inner side at 16 to conform to the exterior contour of the bifurcated portion 10" of the pole. Formed on each of these arms or levers 14 and concentric with the axis thereof is a guiding lip or flange 17, conforming to the periphery of the flange of the trolley and serving to prevent the line or circuit wire 18, with which the trolley is in engagement, from becoming wedged between the sides of the trolley and the bifurcated portion of the trolley-pole.

As will be seen by reference to Fig. 1, the weighted arms or levers 14 tend normally to assume a vertical position; but when the trolley 13 is passing under a switch, crossing, or other obstruction the curved outer edges of said arms 14 will, by contact with the obstruction, cause the arms to be depressed to the position shown by dotted lines in Fig 1, and after passing said obstruction IOO the arms will by gravity immediately assume' the vertical position shown in full lines in said figure.

To afford clearance while the trolley is passing under a switch or crossing, the guiding end 15 of each lever or arm 14 is curved or concaved, as at 153, on its outer side, so that said side will not comey into contact with the guiding-ribs of theswitch or crossing-plate as the contact-wheel passes thereunder. In virtue of this construction it will be seen that when the arms or levers 14 are brought to a horizontal position by contact with a switch or crossing-plate and their outer ends are depressed, as illustrated in Fig. 3, the guiding-ribs on said plate will pass in a straight line over the concaved portions 153 of the arms without interference therewith.

In the use of my invention when it is desired to place the trolley upon a circuit-wire the flaring ends 15 of the levers 14, which curve outward for some distance on each side, will guide the trolley to its seat upon the wire, and after leaving a switch or other obstruction under which the trolley passes these arms will automatically assume vertical positions and will prevent the trolley from jumping olf the wire-as, for instance, when rounding curves of short radius-the weighted ends 16 always causing said arms or levers to assume, when free from contact with extraneous obstructions, vertical positions on each side of said wire.

My invention is not limited to the exact devices shown and described, for changes may be made without departure therefrom.

The arms or levers 14 constitute a means of maintaining the trolley-wheel free of ice in winter, since the overlapping shoulders or flanges 17 and the edges 17 ride close to the circumference and sides of such wheel and act as scrapers to clear the same from ice and snow.

Having thus described myinvention, what I claim is- 1. The combination, with a support, of a contact-wheel, and independently-mounted movable guides extending outwardly beyond the sides of said wheel, each of said guides having a recess or concavity adjacent to its upper free edge and also having a weighted end for normally causing it to assume a vertical position, whereby the guides when brought to horizontal positions by contact with an obstruction will pass over without engaging the ribs or projections of said obstruction.

2. The combination, with a carrier, of a contact-wheel, and a pair of disconnected guides loosely mounted upon the axis of said wheel, each of said guides having an outwardly-flaring end and a recess or concavity adjacent to its upper free edge, whereby the guides when brought to horizontal positions by contact with a switch or crossing-plate will pass over without engaging the guidingribs of said plate.

3. The combination, with a carrier, of a contact-wheel; a bolt upon which said wheel is mounted; and a pair of guides independently mounted for free swinging movement on said bolt adjacent to the sides of the wheel, each of said guides having an outwardly-flaring portion at one end, a recess adjacent to its upper free edge, and a weight at the other end.

4. The combination, with a carrier, of a contact-wheel; a bolt upon which said wheel is mounted for rotation; a guide loosely mounted upon said bolt at one side of said Wheel, said guide having an outwardly-flaring end, a recess adjacent to its upper free edge, a shoulder projecting over the iiange of the wheel, and a weighted extremity; and a second guide located upon said bolt on the other side of said wheel and of the same construction as the Erst-named guide.

5. The combination, with a carrier, of a contact-Wheel, and a pair of arms journaled for free swinging movement adjacent to the sides of said wheel, each of said arms having guiding ends with concave sides, which, when the guides are horizontal, will pass over without engaging ribs or projections on a switch or crossing-plate.

6. The combination, with a carrier, of a contact-wheel supported for rotation thereon, and a pair of guiding arms or levers mounted for free swinging movement upon the carrier at each side of said wheel, each of said arms or levers having a iiaring forward end recessed or concaved on its outer side adjacent to its upper free edge and a weighted lower end.

ANTHONY J. GRIFFIN.

Witnesses:

WM. H. BLODGETT, C. S. CUAMPILL.

IOO 

